


Pebbles on a Beach

by deluxekyluxtrashcan (rhoen)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Beaches, Feels, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-07-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 10:33:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7504909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhoen/pseuds/deluxekyluxtrashcan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kylo wants to show Hux something, and takes him to a windswept beach on a sparsely populated planet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pebbles on a Beach

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pidgy_writes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pidgy_writes/gifts).



> *cries pathetically* I hate having to come up with titles.
> 
> Fluff is not my forte, but I tried...
> 
> > **Do not translate or repost this fic without my permission.**. Ask if you'd like to translate it. Linking to it with a short snipped it okay though!

“Kylo, are you sure this is a good idea?”

Hux hesitates as he eyes the pathway they’ve come to warily, noting each clearly perilous step of the steep, narrow track that leads to their destination. Kylo is already half a step ahead of him and turns, a strong gust of wind catching his hair and blowing it across his face, making him look unfairly rugged and handsome. He looks more at home in the unrefined landscape than Hux thinks he could anywhere else in the galaxy.

“Do you want to go first?”

For a moment Hux considers - he’d rather not go at all - but then he acquiesces, nodding in answer. It is probably safer to have Kylo watching his back instead of loping off ahead, totally oblivious should Hux fall to his death; which Hux is almost certain is going to happen. He can hear the ocean - a steely blue monster of a thing that stretches out as far as the eye can see - crashing against the rocks below, and it sounds ominous. He can’t help shivering, wondering what exactly it is Kylo is so excited to show him - it can’t be the vast expanse of water, so it must be something down at the base of the cliffs.

Kylo easily steps off of the path and circles behind Hux, who takes a moment more to formulate a plan of attack before taking a hesitant step forwards. To his right the ground drops away sharply, with only a few blades of tall grass and a scattering of small white flowers between him and what would no doubt be a painful death. He tries not to think about such a scenario, and focuses instead on the surprisingly compact earth beneath his feet. It seems weathered by more than just the elements, which surprises Hux; he can’t imagine why any beings would wish to venture down to the shoreline. Perhaps there’s some ancient, mystical rock nearby, which would explain why Kylo is so eager to visit it.

It takes less time than Hux would have guessed to descend. He’s so focused on where he’s placing his feet - blocking out everything else around him as he picks his way gingerly forwards - that he’s surprised by the sudden change beneath his feet. The rocks shift a little beneath his weight, sounding very much like the waves dragging back out to sea, and he looks up, surprised.

“Keep going,” Kylo urges from behind him.

Hux takes another step, the sound of the rocks beneath his feet mixing with that of the ocean, and for a moment he’s overwhelmed. The ocean is relentless; ceaseless. He’s struck by the sudden magnitude of it, and the vast, unending depth terrifies him in a way even the darkest reaches of space could not. The noise overwhelms him, and it’s far too easy to imagine that the writhing monster heaving its body onto the rocky shore over and over again would gladly devour Hux as well.

From up on the wide, safe path, it hadn’t seemed so intimidating. Vast, sure; ravenous… no.

A hand at the base of his spine causes Hux to flinch, simultaneously realising his foolishness. The ocean is just a thing: a moving body of water influenced by moons and planetary rotation. It wishes to harm him no more than the air does.

“Does it frighten you?” Kylo asks carefully, wrapping around Hux’s side so that he’s half embracing him.

Hux shakes his head, eyes still on the ocean and taking in the way the waves break, washing up onto the beach and then retreating, noisily dragging stones with them. He thinks about the way each rock is rolled around, pushed steadily backwards and forwards beneath the heaving mass of water - it’s actually oddly comforting. There’s order to it.

“It’s loud,” he decides. “I didn’t realise…”

He doesn’t have to shout, though, so it’s not that loud. And Kylo’s lips are close to his ear, a gentle kiss being pressed to his cheekbone before Kylo speaks again.

“Let’s walk along the beach a bit?”

Kylo’s tone is warm and inviting, encouraging Hux to agree, to do anything to remain close to that warmth. Long fingers lace with his own, Kylo’s warm palm pressing against Hux’s and making him forget everything but where they are in that moment. On both sides sandy coloured cliffs - far less daunting now he’s not at the top of them - embrace the beach, enclosing about a klick of what Hux is coming to realise is oddly beautiful shoreline. He’d always imagined that beaches were sunny and bright, comprised of soft white sands, endless placid blue seas and delighted beach-goers. This one is a little overcast, the ocean steely and rough, stirred by a strong breeze that hasn’t relented, and is as about as far from what Hux had imagined as possible. It’s typical of Kylo to show him exactly what he doesn’t expect, but he’s unexpectedly glad. The rugged wildness and the raw, ceaseless energy are appealing in a way a tableau-perfect scene could never be.

They’re also alone. It’s just the two of them, at what could very well be the edge of the world.

Hux is far less opposed to the idea than he ought to be. It should be frightening, or depressing, but instead he feels oddly comforted by it. As they start walking in silence - the slide of rocks beneath their feet making enough noise for the both of them - he looks around at the strange landscape, realising it’s an almost perfect representation of the man at his side: unexpected, tempestuous, seemingly chaotic and cacophonous, and full of raw power. Too much at first, it’s starting to grow on him.

Hux smiles as he looks down, watching the stones beneath his feet shift under his weight. The beach is made up of different sounds - the crashing of waves battering at the shoreline, the cascade of rocks tumbling over each other as they’re drawn back out to sea, and the slip of stones beneath his and Kylo’s feet. It’s not at all overwhelming when he understands each part. There’s a rhythm to it, and it’s comforting to think that, no matter how many lives come and go and no matter how many empires rise and fall, this beach will always be here, the waves beating against the shore and the rocks tumbling beneath them.

His smile begins to fade as he steadily comes to realise just how much hard work goes into walking along a beach. Huffing a little, Hux stops, looking up again and seeing how far they’ve come, despite the odd quality of the stones slowing them down much like snowfall might. The cliff looms above them, almost as timeless as the waves, and as he considers the warm stone yet to be broken down to nothingness, Hux realises Kylo is regarding him with concern.

“I’m okay,” he assures him before Kylo can ask. Hux turns, looking back over the distance they’ve walked, and at the cliffs hemming them in from the other side. He finds that he's smiling to himself again.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s not what I expected,” Hux admits, turning back to the other man. The breeze has attempted to make a mess of Hux’s hair, and has failed for the most part, but Kylo’s is at the mercy of every gust. It makes Hux want to reach up and push a wayward lock from across Kylo’s eye, and to run his fingers through the unfairly soft, wonderful hair to keep it neat and tidy. There’s nothing stopping him, so he reaches up with his free hand, tucking what he can behind Kylo’s ear and repeating the action when the wind undoes it. Kylo seems distracted by the attention for a moment.

“Had you really never seen the sea before?”

Hux’s earlier, somewhat embarrassing reaction to being confronted with the ocean comes a little uncomfortably to mind, and Hux averts his attention, turning to face outwards. Kylo can clearly tell that he’s not annoyed, and Hux knows the question wasn’t meant to mock him. He doesn’t resist the strong arms that wrap around him, holding him tightly to Kylo’s chest while the other man’s cool cheek presses against Hux’s ear.

“I never really thought about what it would be like,” he half shrugs, considering the vast expanse of water again. He supposes it’s still frightening, but rational thinking has won out, and cannot be dislodged. The waves reach their closest point a few meters away, reaching out and trying to claw just that little bit further up the beach before rolling back again; truly harmless. “Are sandy ones better?”

He can feel the face Kylo pulls, and brings his hand up to rest on Kylo’s arm, which has tightened a little around his chest.

“It depends on the sand,” Kylo says, “but generally, no. I prefer places like this. Less people too.”

Hux hums in agreement, absentmindedly counting the time between the waves as he leans a little more against Kylo’s solid frame. “I didn’t realise they’re so hard to walk on.”

Kylo chuckles warmly. “You should try running.”

“No, thank you,” Hux decides, smiling and turning his cheek to accept the kiss Kylo offers. He can imagine the way his weight would sink and his feet would slide, making it almost impossible to move forwards with any efficiency. He’ll happily watch if Kylo wants to try, but he wouldn’t attempt to do so himself.

They fall silent, and Hux returns to his thoughts of unexpected beauty as he’s soothed by the sight and sounds of the waves. He decides that Kylo is far too warm and a little too unpredictable to be the personification of the ocean.

“I was told a story once,” Kylo says after some time, sounding pensive. “About pebbles on a beach.”

Hux almost laughs, surprised as he is about the focus of the story.

“There was a legend,” Kylo explains, “about a stone, warm to the touch, which would grant whoever possessed it immortality.”

He nuzzles Hux’s cheek as he speaks, kissing him lightly before continuing. Hux leans back against Kylo’s broad, sturdy frame just a fraction more, already wondering about the stone. He knows it’s just a story, but for a moment he indulges the fantasy of being at the head of the galaxy, ruling forever…

“And there was a young man who heard of this stone. A scholar. He was a clever man, but he became obsessed. He made it his life’s work to find the stone.”

Kylo pauses to kiss Hux’s cheek again, his lips lingering there for a moment. Hux smiles at the attention, content to watch and listen as Kylo continues.

“It took him twelve years to track down where the stone might be - twelve years of travelling to all corners of the galaxy, studying old manuscripts and collecting all the information he could. Twelve years of working day and night before he even knew which coastline to start at on the planet he’d narrowed it down to.”

Hux can already tell that the story doesn’t have a good ending, but is too soothed by the sound of Kylo’s voice and the rhythmic lullaby of the ocean to really care how the story unfolds. Kylo kisses him again - this time a little lower - and Hux tilts his neck just a fraction to allow easier access. The wind causes Kylo’s hair to tickle his skin in the same moment, and for a moment, the soft scent of Kylo’s shampoo is clear over the subtle, salty tang that clings to the coastline.

“He came to a beach like this,” Kylo continues, “only miles bigger. He set up camp there, and every day would go onto the beach, searching. He’d pick up a stone, close his hand around it, feel that it was cold, draw his arm back, and fling it into the ocean so that he would not pick it up again.”

Hux ignores the flawed logic. It’s just a story, after all. “And did he ever find it?”

Kylo gives a soft huff of laughter, warm against Hux’s cheek.

“He did that every day. No matter the weather, he’d wake up and go onto the beach, pick up each stone in turn, close his hand around it, feel that it was cold, draw his arm back, and fling it into the ocean. He found nothing. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and months turned into years. The years dragged on. Still nothing. Until, one day, when he was an weatherbeaten, weary old man, he reached down, picked up a stone, closed his hand around it and felt that it was warm. And then he drew his arm back, and flung it into the ocean.”

Hux had thought that perhaps the man would find his stone, only to realise that immortality wasn’t worth it when you have nothing to live for after achieving your life’s ambition. Kylo’s conclusion makes him hesitate, the moral of the story abundantly clear.

Kylo is quiet too, perhaps reflecting on the story. Hux wonders why he’d felt the need to share it, and then thinks about the way he himself has sometimes dealt with paperwork when far too exhausted, repeating the same action over and over until he’s realises, belatedly, that he’s made a mistake. He’s never done anything irreversible, though, and could always rectify the error.

“Does it end there?” Hux asks, wondering how the weatherbeaten old man would react the moment it dawns on him what he’s done - throw himself into the ocean after the stone and drown, probably.

“Yeah,” Kylo nods. His arms tighten around Hux, who is a little startled when Kylo’s head falls forward, resting on Hux’s shoulder.

“Kylo?”

He gets a mumbled, unintelligible reply, accompanied by Kylo hugging him tighter still. He’s borderline - no, scratch that - he’s actively clinging to Hux, who laughs openly and warmly when he hears Kylo’s next words:

“I’m not going to throw you away.”

It’s said so sincerely, as if Kylo is truly afraid that he’s programmed to pick Hux up and fling him into the ocean, that Hux feels sorry for him. He turns in Kylo’s arms, pressing impossibly close to him in the restricted space Kylo’s embrace leaves, and loops his arms around Kylo’s neck.

“Good,” he says definitively, aware that he’s grinning like an infant. “Because I’m not going to throw you away either.”

Forgetting propriety does wonders for Kylo’s mood; he’s startled at first, and then downright elated at Hux’s expression, and Hux sees no reason to stop.

“And it’s beautiful. The beach. Thank you.”

“Really?”

Kylo looks so hopeful: so glad to have done something Hux likes enough to comment on. He clearly hopes Hux is telling the truth. And Hux is. He just wishes he could do it a little more eloquently. He’s acutely aware of the way he flushes at his momentary ineptitude.

“It reminds me of you.” Okay, that’s not what Hux wants to say, but he runs with it. “I had this idea of what it would be like, and it turns out to be something completely different. It’s overwhelming and loud and harsh and unforgiving. The waves are relentless.”

He pauses, one hand brushing Kylo’s hair back from his face. He looks a little wounded. Hux smiles softly as he continues, gently caressing Kylo’s cheek as he gazes into the other man’s eyes.

“It’s powerful - endlessly so - and there’s this…” he struggles for the right word, and doesn’t quite find the one he wants. “...this foreverness about it. At the end of time it will still be here, just as beautiful as it is right now.”

This time, the hesitation is because of the way his throat constricts at his own words. It seems wiser not to speak when so compromised, so Hux holds back for a moment, holding himself still as Kylo loosens one arm so that he can caress Hux’s cheek in kind as he leans in, eyes brimming with emotions which Hux trembles gladly before.

“Hux…”

The sound of his name is almost lost beneath the waves, more breathed than spoken in the space between them. Hux’s eyes fall shut just moments before Kylo’s lips are against his, and for the second time that day he’s too overwhelmed to move. His whole body sings with delight as Kylo holds him close and presses against him, touching him and kissing him, the sensation brimming up inside of him until Hux struggles to contain it. At the same time, he’s still aware of the landscape all around them, and of the breeze lightly buffeting them, and the waves crashing and rolling against the stony beach. He couldn’t have created a more perfect scenario if he’e planned it for years.

They take their time to break apart, and even when the kiss finally ends Hux is still trying to lean into it, reluctant to pull away. One arm now encircles Kylo’s waist, much as Kylo’s does his, and his hand rests on Kylo’s cheek.

“Perfect,” Hux murmurs. “Thank you.”

Kylo responds by kissing him again, far more briefly this time, and then smiling. Hux immediately regrets his earlier words: nothing in the galaxy is as beautiful as Kylo is right now, nor as eternal this moment between them.

 _Eternal_ , Hux thinks. No matter what happens now, he will always have stood here on this beach with Kylo, loving him as completely as any being is capable of loving another, and being loved in return. The thought is endlessly comforting.

“We can stay a little longer,” Kylo offers.

Hux nods, reluctant to think of anything but where they are right now. He wonders if Kylo knows how he feels. It occurs to him that he’s never said it, but then again neither has Kylo, and Hux is almost certain as to how the other man feels for him.

He struggles for a moment, trying to work out how to ask.

“Do you know how I feel?”

“Are you cold?” Kylo asks, concerned.

“I mean about you.”

The concern immediately gives way to a flicker of fear, which is quickly hidden as Kylo glances away.

“No. You never said…”

“Would you like me to?”

Slowly, and clearly both afraid and hopeful, Kylo nods.

It seems like a good idea to close the distance between them and kiss him again, lightly and tenderly. As Hux pulls back, opening his eyes to look at Kylo, he can’t quite find a smile - for all his certainty that Kylo feels the same, there’s still that sliver of doubt.

“I love you.”

The reaction is instantaneous. Kylo give a choked half sob, something within him seeming to fracture, allowing a torrent of emotion to spill forth. He surges forwards to kiss Hux, and the rocks beneath Hux’s feet are nowhere near steady enough as he struggles to regain his balance. He does so, barely, with Kylo’s lips still on his and arms embracing him so tightly he suddenly realises he could never fall: Kylo wouldn’t let him.

He also realises that Kylo is trembling; laughing.

Hux pulls back, a little bemused, and unable to help the small smile on his own lips. “What?”

Kylo’s grin, impossibly, brightens even more. “I’ve hoped for so long… Fuck. Hux. I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you.”

Hux can’t help laughing too, stumbling back half a step as Kylo kisses him over and over again through their laughter. Their arms are wrapped clumsily around each other, and Kylo spins them around, his feet making a tremendous noise in the stones as he does so. It’s sort of like a step in a very clumsy dance, Hux supposes, but he couldn’t care less.

It feels like the sky has brightened after years of storms and darkness, and he knows that the universe will never be a more beautiful place to live in than it is right now, here in Kylo’s arms.


End file.
